Mat-Su Borough Sets Library Goals For Materials, Space

New strategic goals for the five Mat-Su Borough Libraries include maintaining a new process for adding to the collections and reviewing the library layouts.

Borough Community Development Manager Jillian Morrissey says the Library Board will continue its newly focused effort to review incoming materials for purchase. The board did not meet in January due to lack of quorum. However, board members were still offered an opportunity to weigh in on the materials list on an administrative level. Morrissey says they have never done that before and is unsure if it will continue. She says two additional materials are flagged from January’s list by a board member. It is not clear which of those materials is flagged and by which board member.

The new process means that any Board member may challenge any incoming library material. Morrissey then reviews the materials and determines whether they should move forward with the purchase or not. This process only began last fall. Since that time, three of four challenged materials were not purchased. 

When asked if there is a specific rubric or metric used to determine which materials get flagged, Morrissey says that’s up to the individual board members.

If the Borough Assembly votes to sunset the Library Citizens’ Advisory Committee as proposed, the task of reviewing existing library materials also will fall to the Library Board. That item is set for the February 3rd Assembly meeting.

In addition to reviewing materials, Library Board member and former LCAC Chair Chad Scott, expressed interest in safeguards for young people to access certain materials. 

A new strategic goal for this year includes reviewing the library layouts. Morrissey stresses that all the libraries are different so they will review how to maximize each space and to reduce conflicting spaces. She says she looks to the Library Board to offer ideas.

After hearing many residents speak at numerous public meetings about parents needing to know what their children are reading, the Borough created a parental notification program. The program lets parents know what their children are checking out from the library. It has been in place since October 13. To date, two families have opted into the program.

The Library Board will meet again on February 10 at the Willow Public Library at 1pm.